"I'm not sure what's going on." Natsu grinned, smashing his fist into his hand after finishing up his fight with Wally, "But it sounds like this will end if I beat this Jellal guy".
"How about we cheat and cut straight to the end, Happy?"
"Aye!"
As Natsu left Wally behind the block headed man thought about his words. "Fairy Tail giving me freedom huh?"
Natsu was in the middle of a giant room when something glinted in the distance.
"Something's coming this way."
"Hoo-hoo!" The large owl-headed man crashed into him, knocking him through a wall back into the tower.
"Salamander!" Simon exclaimed, having just ran up. "Are you all right?"
"Breaking the rules will not be tolerated." The man announced, landing next to them. "I am the warrior of justice, Fukuro!"
"It's a weird justice bird!" Natsu exclaimed, shocked.
Simon broke into a cold sweat. "Is... is he...?" He grabbed Natsu's arm and began running away. "This is bad! Quickly, follow me!"
"This guy is a friend of the blockhead!" Happy realized.
"I'm on your side now!" Simon countered. "And you mustn't fight against this guy! Dark Moment!"
Natsu looked around in shock as the light in the room completely disappeared, the room turning pitch black.
"Now's our chance!" Simon exclaimed, pulling him away.
"Hoo-hoo!" Fukuro appeared next to him. "The owl of justice strikes even in the darkest of nights!" He punched Simon down the hallway into a wall causing the man to gasp and cough up blood.
"It's the assassin guild, the Death's Head Order!" Simon gasped. "They're a dark guild, who specialize in assassination missions instead of normal jobs. The strongest among them is the trio known as 'Trinity Raven'."
"They're professional killers!" Simon told Natsu. "You cannot win against them!"
Natsu looked at the bird man in anger at this information.
"Salamander..." Fukuro slipped into a fighting stance. "Your infamy has even reached the ears of our guild! It is time for this warrior of justice to put an end to your evil deeds!"
"A guild is a place filled with dreams and aspirations." Natsu growled, as his fists lit up.
"Stop, Salamander!" Simon ordered. "You cannot win against this guy!"
"It pisses me off that there are people who would pay others to kill." Natsu scowled. "Not to mention that they would actually consider themselves a guild. You're pissing me off, so I'm taking you out!" He curved his flaming hand into a claw.
"Hoo-hoo. Young Salamander, there are evils in this world that cannot be permitted to exist." The torpedoes on his jet-pack ignited helping him surge forward. "And you are one of those evils."
Natsu grunted as Fukuro crashed into him and they flew back. "Well, if it's firepower we're talking about here... you won't beat me!"
Fukuro swerved grabbing Natsu's ankle and flying him into the air. Natsu scream echoed through the room as Fukuro threw him into the floor.
Jellal smirked as he used the owl piece to knock the tower over. "How disappointing, Simon... to lose so early in the game..."
He moved the owl piece in front of the dragon. "And now we have Fukuro against Natsu Dragneel." He sighed. "Honestly, I had hoped to go up against Natsu myself, but the odds do not look promising..."
"Natsu!" Lucy called out.
"Natsu!" Juvia shouted.
Lucy sighed. "Natsu's got hearing as good as me, so he should hear us from far away..."
Juvia frowned at being with her love rival and not Gray. "Why did Juvia have to join Lucy on her search for Natsu-san?"
"Because I said so Water girl." Lucy said.
"Gray-Sama had to agree with Lucy..." Juvia muttered resentfully. "Juvia wouldn't go against Gray-Sama's decision, but putting Juvia together with a rival in love?"
"I already said I'm courting Erza dumb water-girl!" Lucy exclaimed in exasperation. "I don't want to date Gray!"
A loud roaring noise filled the room they entered putting Lucy on alert and cutting Juvia off before she could make a rebuttal.
"Juvia kinda likes this music." The water mage observed, unaware of the danger coming. She turned to Lucy who was clutching her ears at the loud music, frowning at the music appearing.
Lucy looked around trying to pinpoint the source of it when from across the room a man appeared swinging his hair wildly, strumming away on his guitar.
"Hee-yah!" He yelled. "Wassup, ladies?"
"This is my concert of hell!" He shouted, changing the beat.
"What's up is I don't like your music so I'm gonna take you down." Lucy observed miffed, releasing a bit of her magic.
Juvia became on alert. "He must be one of Jellal's three warriors."
"We're the assassin's guild, the Death's Head Order!" The man declared proudly, "I am a member of Trinity Raven, Vivaldus Taka! Let's rock!"
Juvia frowned when his hair shot out everywhere. A sweeping motion passed easily through her body as it turned to water and back again. Lucy simply dodged the hair nimbly before standing upright.
"Oh?" Vivaldus blinked, watching Juvia. "That's a rocking body ya got there!"
"Juvia's body is made of water." She informed him.
"No attack can harm Juvia's body." She intoned, surrounding Vivaldus with water.
"Water Lock!"
"Did you say rock?" Vivaldus grinned as the water engulfed him, before getting absorbed into his hair.
Juvia's jaw dropped. "Juvia's water lock... disappeared?"
"Guess that water lock isn't so unbreakable eh?" Lucy joked, remembering what she told her when she was kidnapping her.
"Water is just the thing to use when your hair gets messed up." Vivaldus smirked.
"Unlike shampoo. That stuff will dry your hair out!"
"How did you break Juvia's Water Lock?"
"Should we really be asking questions while he's tryna kill us?" Lucy muttered, eyeing the creepy rocker guy.
"My hair has the power to absorb any liquid!" Vivaldus cackled. "Except for oil or alcohol. That stuff will really mess up your hair!"
Juvia took a step back. "Water won't affect him?"
"You two are a couple of fine ladies!" Vivaldus exclaimed. "But since blondie seems a bit feisty, water-girl gets to be my succubus today!"
Juvia frowned. "Succubus? And seriously will you people stop calling me water girl!"
"A type of female demon..." Lucy scowled. "What's he up to?"
"Rock of Succubus!" Vivaldus screamed, jamming away on his guitar. Purple light surrounded Juvia as she screamed feeling her senses fade away.
"I got me a succubus!" Vivaldus shouted as the light faded. "Yeeah!"
"I'm gonna show you the deepest pits of hell tonight, bitch!" A scantily clad and tattooed Juvia announced. "Yeah!"
"Hey now, Lucifer said it's not nice to call someone that!" Lucy yelled, angered by the insult the blue haired girl threw at her.
"Oh, yeah? Well, I'm gonna drag you to hell with me, ya little bitch!" Juvia cackled.
Lucy clenched her teeth in anger at being called a bitch again. "I'm gonna take you down water girl."
"That's right!" Vivaldus laughed. "She's my succubus now! She won't listen to anyone but me!"
"That's why I'm calling the one person who'll put her in her place" Lucy growled, waiting patiently for the moment when Juvia would attack watching as the rocker dude ordered Juvia to lunge at her. "Open Gate of the Water Bearer: Aquarius!"
"Bahahaha!" The rocker cackled as the mermaid materialized. "How desperate! There is no water around here for you to-"
He stopped laughing when Lucy stuck a golden key in Juvia's succubus body watching as a golden light erupted and out came a mermaid with a giant urn.
"Are you fucking serious, brat? Did you really summon me from a "body" of water?" Aquarius says grinding her teeth so as not to shout.
Lucy for her part cackled, while nodding at the mermaid. "I mean you said only call you in bodies of water, you never said what kind" Lucy said with a grin, flinching when the mermaid gets in her face promising pain later for this and the sword incident earlier.
"As rocking as this is I gotta take you down!" Vivaldus yelled.
"Yeah, yeah" Aquarius said rolling her eyes as she and Lucy charged forward to attack Juvia, who to avoid the attack turned her body to water. Unknown to her this was what Lucy and Aquarius were waiting for as the spirit had immediately created a large whirlpool using Juvia's body.
"Well, la-de-da you created more water!" Vivaldus laughed as his hair began to absorb the water. "I told you, my hair can assimilate all liquids!"
He paled when he felt something the water absorption stop. "What the... there's too much of it!"
Aquarius grinned and swung her vase again, doubling the whirlpool in size. Vivaldus screamed as the rapidly swirling waters tossed him into a wall, his hair falling off, revealing a shiny bald scalp. Juvia similarly fell out of the whirlpool back to normal now that Vivaldus was unconscious with Lucy catching her as she was too weak to stand.
"Lucy, thank you. I'm sorry for the words I said."
"Eh, don't worry about it, Lucifer said to never hold grudges on people who were being controlled."
"That's very specific don't you think?" Juvia deadpanned.
"A lot of stuff happened in my time with him."
Jellal frowned and knocked the guitar over while knocking over the waterfall. "I expected more from Vivaldus Taka... still, it seems only the Ishgar Demon wishes to continue on."
"I guess we're done here..." Aquarius smirked. "I'll be headed back home now. You better not call me or Scorpio out for the next two weeks, got it brat. We're going on vacation."
Lucy nodded not wanting to get on Aquarius's bad side. "Right."
Aquarius waved and vanished in a puff of smoke.
"Anyway, we beat one of those Trinity Raven guys." Lucy observed. "So, time to move on and find my mate, ready water girl?"
"Actually, Juvia is quite tired..." The girl nodded. "A rest sounds good..."
"I mean usually I'd be down for a nap but I gotta save my girl, so I'm gonna go. Be safe alright" Lucy said before running off.
"Very well. Thank you, Lucy" Juvia said before closing her eyes.
"Regarding the decision to fire Etherion, the final votes stand at four for and five against." The chairman announced. "Therefore, Etherion will not be fired."
"Dammit!" Siegrain shot up. "You do not understand the situation we are in!"
"That's enough, Sieg." The chairman sighed. "We're done debating. There are peaceful ways to resolve the matter, after all."
"Don't tell me you haven't felt it..." Siegrain grit his teeth. "That dark energy that has slowly been spreading across the land... that's the power of the man Jellal's been trying to bring back..."
"What are you talking about?"
"He's resurrecting Zeref!" Siegrain shouted. Jaws dropped and many of them began to sweat in fear.
"What did you just say?" The chairman whispered, clearly audible in the shocked silence. "How could you possibly know that?"
"I didn't want to bring suspicion on myself, so I didn't mention this, but I know that man..." Siegrain sighed heavily. "I know Jellal... and I know what he intends to do..."
"Siegrain." The chairman frowned. "Tell us everything."
Natsu grit his teeth as Fukuro kicked him, causing him to slide back. "Fire Dragon's Claw!" He shouted, slamming Fukuro in the face.
The fighters glared at each other as they regained footing. "I think it is time to crush you with the hammer of justice!" Fukuro announced as his jet-pack and torpedoes shot at Natsu. "Missile Bomb!"
"What a strange attack..." Simon muttered, watching the two fight with wide eyes.
Happy paled. "Oh no..."
"I am well aware of your weakness, Salamander." Fukuro observed.
"This is bad. That thing is a vehicle!" Happy explained to Simon. "Natsu suffers from severe motion sickness!"
"Now that my prey has been weakened, I can move in for the kill!" Fukuro announced as the arms released Natsu. "This is the essence of hunting." He darted forward to intercept Natsu. "Capture!"
His mouth opened wide dropping Natsu headfirst into it.
"What the hell?" Simon exclaimed as Fukuro forced Natsu down his throat. "What on Earth are you doing?"
"I can digest the magic of those I have eaten." Fukuro explained.
"Digest..." Simon's eyes widened. "Do you mean to tell me you're able to somehow absorb Salamanders power?"
"Hoo-hoo!"
"I'll take that as a yes?"
"There are eight votes in favor." The chairman announced. "Our business here is finished. In one hour, the Etherion will be ready to fire."
Siegrain looked down at a disappointed man. "Yajima-san, you may find this difficult to accept, but at least you realize we cannot allow Zeref to be revived, right?"
"It isn't my role to complain anymore..." Yajima sighed. "But I trust you are ready to handle the consequences?"
"Of course." Siegrain nodded.
"Erza, looks like your second strongest piece is out..." Jellal grinned, knocking the dragon over. "Now what's your move? You're out of time... it won't be long before the light crashes down on us..."
"Erza..." Gray scowled. "Dammit, where is that idiot Natsu anyway? I'll smash his face in when I find him!"
He ran into a wide room and froze. "What the hell are you doing?" He yelled at a beaten Simon. "Did you find Natsu?"
"Gray..." Simon turned to him. "Salamander got swallowed by that guy..."
"What is he thinking messing around?" Gray punched the wall next to him, glaring at Fukuro. "Stupid flame-brain..."
"The digestion process has begun!" Fukuro announced. "In ten minutes, Salamander's body will completely dissolve. And when that happens, his magic will be truly mine!"
Gray couldn't help but facepalm at the fact Natsu had gotten swallowed by some type of hybrid birdman. "Whatever, I'll deal with this punk!" Gray declared. "Ice Make: Lance!"
Fukuro eyed the attack headed his way and spat out flames. "Fire Dragon's Roar!"
"He's absorbing Salamander's magic as we speak!" Simon yelled as Gray was engulfed in flames.
"Hoo-hoo!" Fukuro yelled, continuing to spew out fire. "Ice is nothing in the face of fire!"
Inside the flames, Gray grit his teeth.
"Useless!" Fukuro roared. "As one of Salamander's comrades, you should know the strength of these flames!"
Fukuro's jaw dropped when the fire turned solid and transparent with a bluish hue.
"He froze the flames?" Simon asked in disbelief.
"These are hardly Natsu's flames" Gray smirked.
"Hoo-hoo!" Fukuro charged forward. "Such impressive magical power. I think I shall devour you as well!"
Happy teared up when Fukuro caught Gray and swallowed most of his upper body. Just when it seemed the fight was over the owl-man's eyes bulged out when both his insides and outside began to freeze.
"We don't have time to waste here!" Gray yelled, having pulled himself out.
"I'm taking Erza back with me!" Gray shouted, charging at Fukuro.
"Erza is part of Fairy Tail, one of us..." Gray frowned, standing over his fallen opponent. "She was always crying alone, but no more!"
Gray Fullbuster... Simon gaped at the scene before him. He is more powerful than the information regarding him said...
"I have to find Erza..." Gray grit his teeth, trying to ignore his injuries.
No... Simon realized. It looks like his feelings for Erza, for his comrades, is what drives him to such extremes...
"Sho!" Erza yelled form inside her card prison. "Calm down! Let me out of here!"
Their eyes widened when an elegantly dressed woman appeared before them amidst a flurry of pink flower petals.
"I am called Ikaruga." She intoned, giving a slight bow. "Greetings to you."
Sho scowled. "Who the hell are you, lady?"
"Oh, my." Ikaruga sighed. "Such a foul-mouthed young man."
"I don't have time to waste on you!" Sho exclaimed, throwing several cards at her. Ikaruga narrowed her eyes at the projectiles, drawing her sword and slicing through all of them. Sho stared in disbelief as the cards split in half."
"There isn't anything under the sky that I cannot cut through." Ikaruga observed as two cuts appeared on Sho and he collapsed in a spray of blood.
"When... did you..." The boy rasped.
"Sho!" Erza shouted, drawing Ikaruga's attention to her card prison.
"So, you were hiding in a place like that, Erza, like a coward" The woman smiled.
"Let me out of here, Sho!" Erza demanded. "You cannot win against her!"
"Don't worry..." Sho sighed. "That card has protection on it, nobody from the outside should be able to hurt you..."
His eyes widened when Ikaruga slashed at the card and Erza blocked it with her sword before she could get hurt. "No way... she cut inside the card? In a separate dimension?"
Erza scowled when she saw the swordswoman advance on Sho causing her to force her way out of the card, much to everyone's surprise.
"How?"
"Thanks to her first slash, there was a distortion in the space fabric." Erza explained. "I sliced through it to escape."
Sho teared up. Sister is incredible...
"I have no business with you." Erza told Ikaruga. "Leave."
Her eyes widened when cuts appeared on her armor and it crumbled to pieces, leaving her in her regular attire.
"That was my way of greeting." Ikaruga smirked. "Don't tell me... you didn't see me move?"
Erza frowned, requipping into Heaven's Wheel Armor. "You are clearly an enemy, I can see that."
"Watch yourself." Ikaruga grinned, shooting forward. "Here I come."
Erza scowled as Ikaruga calmly gave and parried attacks, far above her own level of swordsman ship.
"Circle Sword!" Erza yelled, flying back and throwing a circle of weapons at Ikaruga.
The woman smirked. "Moonless Sky Art." She intoned, easily cutting through each of them. "Empty Flash."
Erza watched as the swords fell to pieces. Her eyes widened when Ikaruga slashed again, destroying her armor.
"Moonless Sky Art." Ikaruga sang. "Crescent Flame!"
"Requip!" Erza countered. "Flame Empress Armor!"
The armor did stop her from getting burned, but it still pushed her into a wall. "A flame-resistant armor?" Ikaruga raised an eyebrow. "I'm impressed you managed to requip so quickly."
Erza gasped as her armor shattered.
"However, it is still not enough." Ikaruga advised her. "I suggest you use the strongest armor you have."
"None have seen this armor and lived to talk about it!" Erza exclaimed, requipping into a black and spiky suit of armor. "Observe and despair. Requip: Purgatory Armor!"
Ikaruga scoffed and leapt forward, easily cutting it to pieces.
"Sister..." Sho muttered as Erza's eyes shot open in shock. "Sister can't win..."
"Was that your strongest armor?" Ikaruga smirked as Erza collapsed to the floor. "No matter what armor you wear, it cannot hold against my blade. Surrender."
Erza glared at her as she pushed herself up and requipped into bandages around her chest and cloth pants with painted flames, holding two plain swords in her hands. Both Sho and Ikaruga were surprised.
"Is this a joke?" Ikaruga asked. "There is no magic in that armor. It's just cloth."
Sho grit his teeth. "Just cloth?"
"And after I went to so much trouble to show you my skills..." Ikaruga sighed theatrically. "It seems I am being underestimated."
"Sister!" Sho wailed. "What's wrong with you? You have tons of strong armors left, don't you? You're stronger than this, right?"
"No, I am not strong." Erza whispered. "I'm not..."
Erza lowered her gaze to the ground. "I prefer being alone... I feel more at ease when I'm by myself."
"Then why were you crying?"
"So many of my comrades died before me..." Erza muttered as she remembered Rob and her friends, the way they were eight years ago. "I failed to protect those I cared about..."
"I was always crying... always trying to make myself seem stronger than I was... I locked up my heart in a suit of armor, and cried..."
"It is because I am weak that I will always hide behind a suit of armor." Erza scowled. "I could never find it in me to remove it."
"It makes no difference to me." Ikaruga announced. "Even if my opponent is naked, I will still slice her."
"I always believed that the armor would keep me safe, but that wasn't right." Sho listened, enraptured by Erza's words. "The link between people's hearts that allows them to connect was being blocked..."
"But Fairy Tail taught me the truth!" Erza declared, as an image of the guild members appeared in her mind. "That being close to people and feeling their warmth is so much better!" Next was an image of a blonde with a toothy grin, causing a small smile to appear on Erza's face.
"Prepare yourself!" Ikaruga advised, jumping forward.
"I no longer have any doubts!" Erza charged to meet her attack. "I shall transform my very core into strength and take you down!"
Jellal sighed, standing up to see who had made to the tower already. "Don't tell me the game is over already."
Lucy blinked in confusion as soon as she saw she was at the top of the tower and a face she had seen once before came into view. "Hey, aren't you Mystogan?"
"Who?"
Lucy narrowed her eyes as her slayer powers began reacting to the demonic power coming off the blue haired man, "No, you're someone else. Tell me Who are you and what did you do to yourself that such a demonic presence is emitting from your body".
Jellal stared at the blonde in surprise, he had heard stories of what she had done but he didn't believe that she could sense demons.
"My name is Jellal Fernandes and I merely answered a call. Now answer me this, how did you get up here without passing by Ikaruga, I was watching the entire time and you didn't pass her, there was no other way you could've gotten here. So just...how?"
"I made a shortcut" Lucy said with a devilish grin as she pointed to a hole in the wall which was melted down, steam still coming off it.
"You're kidding me."
"Nope, now then" Her joking expression vanished, replaced by a snarl. "Onto the fight!"
Lucy quickly charged forward with a hellfire fist to the surprise of Jellal.
"Meteor!" Jellal immediately dodged the blonde, shooting across the room preparing himself for a counterattack. Unfortunately, he underestimated Lucy's speed for when he turned around a jet stream of flames shot at the man's face from Lucy's right arm knocking him across the room. As he rolled back Lucy gracefully skidded across the floor where she landed.
"Hmm, I see your reputation of being brutal in battle proceeds you" the man sneered.
"I didn't earn the name Ishgar Demon for nothing. Taurus!"
"What?" Jellal asked surprised as a bull materialized out of nowhere and sent him flying with their axe.
Slowly picking himself up, he felt rather than saw the gash on his stomach. Jellal merely laughed at the pain wiping the blood off his mouth, "I see I'll have to start taking you serious, Ishgar Demon."
Lucy adjusted her stance when she saw the demonic power begin to shift around Jellal, the killing intent surrounding him becoming more and more unstable.
"Miss Luuucy, we need to watch out". Taurus warned, surprised at the amount of power this mage contained.
Lucy said nothing as even she was surprised at the power this man had. Shifting she narrowed her eyes looking for an opening in his stance, slightly surprised when she found none, making sure to be cautious of the next move the man made.
"I'll be ending this now" Jellal remarks. Before Lucy could even blink Jellal appeared right before her eyes, shooting a dark magic energy beam through her torso before she could react.
"What-!" blood shot out of Lucy's mouth as she felt the dark energy hit her, Taurus disappearing before he could even help due to his master's energy draining.
"MISS LUUUUCY!"
"Hmm, and here I thought the Ishgar Demon would bring me a greater challenge" Jellal drawled, "I guess the rumors were false."
As the man began to slightly limp away from the blonde's motionless body he began to look and see how things were progressing with his other "players", causing him to miss the girl slowly pick herself up, a dark look in her eye as she wiped the blood off her mouth, the magic surrounding her becoming more potent.
"Now, it's my turn…Jellal" Lucy chuckled.
Jellal busy paying attention to those still in the tower missed hearing the girl who should've been dead by such a high-powered blast and was unable to dodge the flaming kick to his side sending him tumbling across the room.
"This fight's only just begun, Fernandes" Lucy spat.
"The fight... is over..." Ikaruga smiled, collapsing with her sword breaking in several places.
"All right!" Sho cheered. "Sister, you were incredible!"
"Impressive..." Ikaruga muttered weakly. "For the first time in my life, I have tasted defeat... however, both you and Jellal are destined to share this fate..."
Erza stared at her in shock.
"Fifteen minutes..." Ikaruga lifted an arm weakly. "The light of justice... shall rain down from the heavens... it will kill us all..."
Erza and Sho looked to each other when they realized what swordswoman's words meant.
Natsu looked up weakly... and his head shot up in alarm. "What?"
"Ah, so you're awake then." Simon observed, carrying the boy on his shoulder.
"I remember ending up on some sort of vehicle..." Natsu's cheeks puffed up. "Ughh..."
"After that vehicle ride, Fukuro swallowed you." Simon explained. "Gray ended up defeating him and saving you."
"Gray?"
"Yeah." Simon nodded, putting Natsu down. "But he took some damage himself. That cat of yours took him outside the tower."
"No way!" Natsu wailed comically. "I lost to someone who Gray beat?"
"Well..." Simon hesitated. "You didn't exactly lose... you got eaten."
"I'm gonna be teased for like a month after this!" Natsu panicked. "If Lucy finds out she'll never let me live this down!"
"This is not the time for that!" Simon protested, grabbing Natsu's scarf to stop him from running off. "
Natsu looked back at him. "Hey, who are you, anyway?"
"I'm Simon. I'm an old friend of Erza." He grunted, falling to one knee in pain.
"Hey, are you hurt or something?"
"Don't worry about me..." Simon rasped. "Listen, Natsu... I just received a transmission from Milliana and Wally. They found Juvia resting on the ground near a defeated member of Trinity Raven. Since they weren't sure what's going on, they didn't know what to do, but I told them to get Juvia out of the tower. And from what I hear from Sho, that means all of Trinity Raven is defeated."
"Eh?" Natsu moaned. "But I didn't get to do a thing!"
"The only enemy left is Jellal himself." Simon observed. "It seems that my worst fears may come to pass after all. Sho says that Erza had managed to get past Ikaruga before and if I had to hazard a guess, I'd say she already reached Jellal by now."
"Then there's no problem!" Natsu cheered. "She'll kick his ass easily!"
"Wrong." Simon shook his head. "While Erza will fight him, she won't be able to strike him down when the time comes. Jellal is too powerful for that."
"You don't gotta worry though because Lucy's probably headed up there" Natsu pointed out, "She'll take him down in like ten seconds."
"Please, Natsu." Simon glared at Natsu seriously. "You must help Erza!"
"Sorry but Erza is Lucy's mate, I can't butt in on a fight like this."
Simon's jaw dropped.
Jellal groaned, the fight against the Ishgar Demon was taking surprisingly longer than he thought it would have. She's heavily injured, but she's fighting as though she's yet to get a scratch on her.
"Mavis, she really is a demon" he sweat dropped.
Taking stock of his other injuries Jellal quickly popped his should into place, while tearing part of his cloak to wrap his stomach taking note that the gash on his stomach was far bigger than he initially thought, and that he was most likely going to have a few burn marks on his body after this whole ordeal was done. Once done he looked to where he Lucy was who was also taking a few breaths from their pause in the fight.
"You're quite the formidable foe, Ishgar Demon. I will admit I was not expecting such a fight from someone of your caliber" he chuckled, before gasping in pain.
"Yeah, I get that a lot" Lucy said with a dopey grin, wincing at her movement. "Helps, that we're fighting at night since it gives me a boost in my magic" she said, remembering one of her lessons from Lucifer.
Jellal couldn't help but facepalm at finding out the girls secret to be such a powerhouse now.
"Note to self-fight mages with celestial powers during day" Jellal thought.
The sound of footsteps brought him out of his stupor.
"Oh, well la-dee-da look who decided to finally show up" Jellal sneered, after spitting out blood.
"About time you made it here, Erza." He observed.
Erza's eyes widened in shock when she saw Jellal standing in the middle of the tower bloodied. She gasped shocked when she saw Lucy just as bloody on the other side of him wavy happily to her.
"Mate! Hey mate! Look I almost have him!" Lucy yelled, grimacing at her movements.
Erza covered her face in embarrassment at the blonde's actions.
"I'll admit, Erza, I was surprised when I saw the Ishgar Demon here first, but then again they say she has a thirst for battle" Jellal grunted, managing to get over the wave of pain that hit him.
"Hey, I just ran where I thought-
Jellal continued with his speech to Erza ignoring Lucy's yelling by throwing another energy beam her way.
"Renowned for her strategic battle skill, and magical prowess which is unmatched by those far and wide" he endured the pain for a dramatic slow clapped for the battered girl on behind him. "Yes, she is turning out to be quite the fight."
Erza's eyes widened in horror at seeing Lucy barely dodge the energy beam shot her way. She watched as the celestial mage/demon slayer slowly got back up on all fours, a look of anger on her face that even scared Erza.
Jellal smirked seeing the anguish in his former friends' eyes. " My apologies, I didn't know she meant so much to you. Had I known...well I still would've attacked her, but I would've tried harder to make her death swift, instead of prolonging this godforsaken fight".
"You're a monster!" Erza yelled, wanting to go and help Lucy up but unable to since Jellal was in her way.
"Well I had to see that the tower was finished" he said with an eye roll. "Besides you could have simply fled this place at any time today avoiding this." Jellal observed. "But you didn't, tell me why that is?'
"I plan to free all of my comrades." Erza scowled.
"Suit yourself. I've no use for them." Jellal shrugged. "Not now that the Tower of Heaven is complete."
"Even if it will be destroyed in a mere ten minutes?" Erza asked him.
"You mean the Etherion?" Jellal chuckled nonchalantly.
"You don't seem to care..." Erza's grip on her sword tightened. "I bet you were bluffing, there's no Etherion..."
"Oh, not at all." Jellal said as he removed his cloak revealing how injured his body was and grinned. "Etherion will fall."
Erza stood shock for a moment, Mavis, Lucy did not hold back.
"Yes, yes I'm a mess, thank your friend." Jellal drawled.
"...That's not what I was going to say!" Erza prepared to attack. "Anyways, if there's only ten minutes. Then I will do everything I can to keep you here that long, I will bring an end to this!"
"And what of the Ishgar Demon?" Jellal raised an eyebrow. "She's in no condition to move. I'm not even sure she's alive right now!"
"Nah, I'm okay, just a little broken right now!" Lucy yelled, as she shot a thumbs up where she sat watching the two argue. "Once you get back to fighting, I'll be back up!"
Erza let a small smile slip on her face at her dumb demon's reply. "Well, now that we've established Lucy-
"You're mate!"
"…no"
"I tried!"
"As I was saying, now that we know Lucy is semi-alright, I'm sure Natsu will ignore orders of leaving and come charging here." Erza replied. "Once he does, I'll tell him to take her to safety."
"Not likely!" Lucy yelled, not laying on her side letting the celestial power surrounding her absorb into her body.
"Shut up, already!" Erza yelled.
"Okay!"
"Ahem..." Jellal cleared his throat. "Well, you are correct to not think about leaving yourself... because you are going to die, as my sacrifice to Zeref!"
"That much is pure fact!" He laughed loudly, going back to his dramatic persona. "It is your destiny!"
"I don't understand..." Simon frowned. "Why are you refusing to help Erza, your own comrade, guild mate, and friend?"
"He's Erza's enemy, so I say Erza should fight him." Natsu countered. "This isn't something I should interfere in. As it is, Lucy will be there for help, so why am I needed?"
"Erza and Lucy have no hope of defeating Jellal! What don't you understand!"
"Don't insult her like this, you creep! Beside Lucy's a wizard saint, do you even know how powerful Lucy is?"
"This isn't a contest of magical power!" Simon yelled. "Erza is still hoping to save Jellal somehow, I know it! She doesn't have it in her to hate him! She's a big softie secretly".
Natsu watched the man still not convinced.
"Okay. You explained why Erza can't beat him, but why not Lucy?"
"Jellal is a cunning man." Simon sighed, calming down. "He will use the feelings Erza still has for him, angering Lucy and throwing her off her game. But it gets worse than that, the Magic Council is planning to fire Etherion down on this place, and there are only ten minutes left."
"Oooh, you're right. Lucy isn't gonna like that." Natsu said, only having paid attention to the Erza still having feelings for Jellal part.
Simon stared at Natsu. "Did you not hear about the Etherion shooting down on us in ten minutes and us all dying if that happens?"
Natsu shrugged.
Simon shook his head and continued, "You know Erza well, right? As much as it hurts to admit it, she's most likely planning on using the Etherion to die and take Jellal with her!"
Natsu grit his teeth. "You should have said that at the beginning, dumbass! Tell me where Erza is, then get outta here got it!"
"Seven minutes left." Jellal smirked. "Only seven minutes until Etherion rains down on us. Let us enjoy those few minutes, Erza."
"There is nothing that I fear anymore." Erza scowled.
"Even if Etherion does fall, I will be satisfied by taking you with me."
"Tsk, not on my watch" Lucy thought as she slowly stood back up having rested up enough.
"…ENOUGH, Here I come!" Jellal frowned, sending blasts of dark energy at Erza, who countered by dodging some and slashing through others. The man noticed an opportunity and made a hand sign, causing an explosion in front of Erza and sending her crashing through a wall.
"You just finished this tower and you're wrecking it already?" She shouted, shooting herself off a falling chunk of wall and slicing at Jellal. "I'm speechless."
"It's just a pillar and section of a wall." Jellal observed. "Nothing really important."
"Sho and the others have worked on it for eight years for you!" Erza yelled, landing back on solid ground and swinging at him.
"No need to remind me." Jellal formed a bright orb in his hand. "What's really important here is the R-system. And now it is finally complete!"
The orb smashed into Erza, expanding and trapping her within. Jellal's eyes widened when she was able to cut herself free and sprung forward, slashing him near his stomach causing an immense amount of pain on his injury before he could react.
You're kidding me... Jellal was shocked as he collapsed and Erza pinned him down.
This is the same Erza?
The girl pointed her sword at his neck. "What are you really after?" She asked. "You haven't really completed the R-system, have you?"
"Don't think I wasted those eight years." Erza told the stunned man. "I did my research on the R-system. The building is indeed finished, according to the blueprints from back then. However, you are still missing a basic thing to really complete it."
"I told you." Jellal grinned, despite his pain. "You will be the sacrifice..."
Erza shook her head. "No. Something even more basic than that... magic power."
"To activate a spell on this scale needs a vast amount of magical energy." Erza explained. "It is impossible for a single person to gather all of it and store it in this tower."
"And that's not all." She frowned. "You are aware of the council's plan to destroy this place, yet you remain unconcerned. Just what are you up to?"
Jellal cackled. "Three minutes until Etherion falls..."
"Your dream is over!" Erza yelled. "It has been for a long time! Do you really just want to die here?" She grabbed his arm angrily. "If so, then die here with me! I'll hold you down until that final moments arrives!"
Off in the far corner of the tower of heaven an injured Lucy who was mostly healed thanks to the celestial energy having been absorbed into her body began to move towards the brawl happening in the middle of the room. Although she still had the aches and a giant hole in her stomach Lucy still found her magic had been restored, to an acceptable level to help her mate fight again.
As Lucy began to head towards where Erza and Jellal were she caught a glimpse of their conversation, her face dropping at the pain she felt from her words.
"She...wants to die with him?"
She just wants to save her friends Lucy, don't look too into Princess" Loke said trying to soothe his master.
Lucy sighed, "She doesn't love me. And she never will, so why do I even try."
Clenching her fists in anger, causing the wound on her palm to reopen, Lucy listened to Erza continue to try and talk down Jellal, saddened that she was still trying to sacrifice herself with the blue haired asshole.
"Stop pouting little demon and get back up!" a voice in her head tutted.
"Luce" Lucy whispered.
"I didn't raise a wimp, did I!"
Lucy looked around trying to pinpoint that voice. Her heart soaring at having heard the gravelly voice after missing it for so many years.
"No..you didn't" Lucy said with a devilish grin.
"That's right, now go save your mate!"
"You got it...Luce" Lucy chuckled sadly, chalking up the voice to be her imagination.
Back to Erza and Jellal
"Yeah..." Jellal chuckled weakly. "That doesn't sound too bad..."
"My body was possessed by Zeref's lingering spirit..." He muttered. " Your friend figured that out when she tried slaying the demonic power within me but failed too. In the end there was nothing I could do... but be a mere puppet on strings, working to fully restore him..."
"Possessed?"
" I couldn't save myself" Jellal smiled softly. "My comrades couldn't either... there was no one who could help" He scoffed. "Heaven and freedom, I couldn't find either one. It was all over before it even began..."
Erza's eyes widened.
"The final phase of the Etherion firing sequence is complete!" A supervisor announced. "Expand the Satellite Square.
A large magic circle appeared over the tower. Sho, Wally, Milliana, Simon, Juvia, Gray, and Happy watched from their boat as light began to gather.
"Whoa..." Wally's jaw dropped. "They're seriously going to fire the Etherion?"
"Natsu, Erza, Lucy!" Happy sobbed. "You gotta get out of there..."
Simon grit his teeth. "I should have gone after Salamander." He spat. "But he shot upwards using his legs as jets-
"Yeah, thank the other flame brain for that move" Gray drawled.
"... there's no way I would have reached the top on foot."
"I knew I could never finish the R-system..." Jellal muttered. "But Zeref's spirit wouldn't allow me to give up. I can't stop this now. I'm a discarded shell, not worth redemption..."
"Erza." He smiled. "You win this fight... so please kill me. That's why you came here, right?"
"There's no reason for me to raise a finger..." Erza sighed. "This noise... the Etherion must be preparing to fire right now..." She tossed her sword to one side and released his arm. "It's over." She remarked, getting off him. "For you... and for me..."
"You were just another sacrifice for Zeref, weren't you?" She asked as he sat up next to her.
"This is my sin for giving in to my weakness." Jellal observed. "My heart couldn't handle the gap between dreams and reality."
"But don't you think that locking your weaknesses away within yourself is what comrades are for?" Erza asked him.
"I have to atone as well..." Erza smiled. "For the sin of being unable to save you..."
"Oh, no." Jellal shook his head, about to embrace her, "You did save me."
Light began to surround them.
"I'm sorry about your friend" Jellal muttered pulling Erza into his arms not noticing the injured slayer on his side begin to move.
Erza's eyes widened she glanced at Lucy, who was now missing from her spot in the rubble. "Lucy?!"
Everything fell silent as a light crashed down on them.
Unheard by them the slightly healed slayer used the strength she had gained and cast the one spell she knew was a risk to her health.
"celestial guardian shield" while the words were whispered, a large golden shield still erupted around the tower blocking the incoming blast. Slowly her magic began to fade, the shield cracking as the blast continued to descend on the tower, until finally it broke through allowing the last of the blast to hit the tower revealing its true form.
Lucy fell to one knee and frowned as she felt the tower shake. "The hell if I'm letting you move in on my territory Jello!"
Hope this chapter was to your liking. Thank you everyone who wished me well on my job hunt.